A woman who helped to dump a man's body in a quarry and later went on social media to express concern for his wellbeing has been jailed for six years.
The Central Criminal Court was told that 34-year-old Jane Corcoran, with an address at Pairc na Dara, Clonard, Co Wexford, lied to gardaí about the circumstances surrounding the death and disappearance of Stephen Ring in 2024.
She falsely accused another man of having assaulted Mr Ring and wasted garda time and resources that should have been used in the search for the deceased.
Mr Ring's body remained in the Carrigfoyle Quarry, in Co Wexford, for 13 days before being discovered by two children who were out fishing.
Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo said that Corcoran lacks insight into her offending and has engaged in a "degree of victim blaming" by suggesting to probation officers that Mr Ring was responsible for what happened to him.
Corcoran has told probation officers that she and another man had been looking for Mr Ring to repay a €900 drug debt, the judge said.
Mr Ring's last recorded movement was when he arrived at Corcoran's home at about 2am on 15 October, 2024. Less than two hours later, Corcoran was caught on CCTV reversing her car to her front door and helping to move Mr Ring's remains, wrapped in a blanket, to the boot of her car. She then drove to the quarry where the remains were "dumped" in the water.
A probation officer who has worked with Corcoran since she went into custody in 2024 has found that she appears emotionally detached from the offence and has a limited capacity to explore how she could have acted differently. She is considered at a high risk of reoffending within the next 12 months.
Mr Justice Naidoo also noted the impact on the family of Mr Ring.
At a previous hearing, Mr Ring's mother, Linda Ring, said she and her family are traumatised by how her son was dumped in a quarry "like a piece of rubbish". She described Corcoran as "pure evil" and said she hopes she will "never find a day's peace".
Mr Justice Naidoo said Corcoran knew she was increasing the stress and anguish on the Ring family by participating in the disposal of the body and by deliberately misleading gardaí.
The judge said the family has been left with "deep and abiding emotional scars" from the emotional impact of not knowing where Mr Ring was for 13 days, and the condition of his body after such a length of time in water.
He set a headline sentence of nine years which he reduced to six years and nine months after considering mitigation, the most significant aspect of which was her guilty plea.
Mr Justice Naidoo also noted that Corcoran had apologised to the Ring family but said her false expressions of concern for Mr Ring on social media are "difficult to reconcile with her expressions of remorse". He said the lack of remorse and the victim blaming noted by probation officers meant the value of her plea was "less than it might be".
Mr Justice Naidoo suspended the final nine months of the sentence for two years, on conditions, including that she comply with all lawful directions of the probation services. He said he hopes she can gain real insight into her offending.
